The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-23

Cfhcial and Society Ladies Dazzled
With His Display of Gems Last Season
100000 Worth Sold-Mrs. Whit
ney's 100000 Necklace--A $4,000
Diamond Lost.
From the Nete York Sun.
WARRINGTON, Nov. 19.-One of the SEN
stations in Washington society during the
last season was the appearance of noted
dealer in precious stones, who created a
Juror among the ladies of the Cabinet and
high officials, and in social circles He APP
preached society with his gems from new
direction-a social one. A handsome and
courteous gentleman himself, with beau
tiful wife, both accustomed to good social
usages, the diamond merchant was able to
reach the inner circles of society. He had
quarters at the Arlington, and within few
weeks after his arrival he had Washington
ladies in fever of excitement over the
splendid gems with which he dazzled their
eyes, and all the husbands in Washington
going down into their pocketbools, and
wishing the Cincinnati merchant was in
Jericho. When the season closed, nearly
$500, 600 had passed into the pockets of the
dealer in precious stones, and rich and rare
were the gems that flashed upon many
white neck and arm in the great society
brushes OF the latter part of the season,
whose owner had trusted before that to the
power of their own beauty unadorned.
One of the first of the many stories set
ahoat about the craze for gems was of the
purchase by the Whitneys of $50, 000neck-
lace. In the necklace were forty stones,
graded from the great centre stone each
way to stones of the weight of a thistle
down. All the diamond markets in the
world had been searched TO accomplish the
graduation. Soon afterward there was a
story about some unpleasantness in the
household of a Western politician of ma
tional fame on account of a loving wife
opening a letter to her husband containing
a bill for diamonds which she had never re-
ceived and there were a good many ex-
plantations, and friends called in and a peace
patched up by the purchase of more dia-
monds, which did go to the wife and not to
some other person.
1t was told of the wife of far Western
Senator, that while sitting i'll the parlor of
hotel, after having sent up her card to the
wife of another Senator living at the hotel
her attention was attracted to a little group
of ladies gathered about the diamond mer-
chant, who had spread his wares ON the
piano for their inspection. She listened to
their ''ahs" and ''ohs," and little screams of
ecStatic admiration, and then crossed the
room and joined the group. She handled
the gems with an appearance of indifference
blended with the air of a connoiSseur. THE
other ladies, wives of Congressman and
government officials, stood back respect
fully. Finally she picked up a great car
buncle pendant set in double row of pearls
and diamonds, and said:
"What do you value that at9"
Seventeen hundred dollars" was the re-
ply.
The lady opened her reticule, took out
check book, made out a check for the
amount, put the pendant in her pocket and
calmly resumed her chair. She paralyzed
that group of ladies, and at the same time
added another jewel to a collection which is
already one of the richest owned by any
American lady.
The diamond merchant has returned to
town, and is prepared for another campaign.
Last night he had an adventure in the Eb-
bitt House that made his hair curl He is
noted for dealing in gems of extraordinary
size and value, and is intrusted with the
sale Of such gems by European and New
York dealers. He took a friend into the
readlng-room of the hotel to show
him an extraordinary opal, claimed to be
the largest and finest in America, set
in diamonds. He spread out the stones
on the table, and they made brilliant and
dazzling display. The opal, which is over
an inch long and wonderfully iridescent,
was admired, together with big amethyst
set in brilliants, and handful of diamonds
of different values, some of them, as the
saying goes, worth a kings ransom. AT
length he carefully produced the star of the
collection, a diamond of fifteen caratS,
which he says is the finest in the world
which is for sale, and is valued at 5000
He put the great stone in his tweeZers and
passed it over to his friend, against his
usual custom, which is alwa rs to hold the
CfsO in Xuba in no
tweezerS Just as the stone was changing
hands, and the diamond merchant was say
ing, Hold it firmly there was a snap,
streak of light, click ON the marble floor,
and the diamond was gone. The party of
men were sittf'.., at the end of the writing
table near the windows opening on F street,
and the stone shot toward the other end of
the large rScsn from which doors open into
the general Office near the washroom and
the newsstand The two or three other
gentlemen in the room sprang for the So,
900 diamond, and everybody went down on
hands and knees in a search for it. The
doors were hurriedly closed, and Mr.. Burch,
the head clerk summoned. Here was for
tune in one little stone lying somewhere
about the hotel floors, and crowds of per-
sons, servants, etc, passing and repassing
The stone seemed to shoot into the of
the room behind the door leading into the
general office, and search was made there
eff the stone is in sight you cannot miss
it." said the diamond merchant. "You
might as well try to hide a coal of fire."
1t was found that in that particular
corner there were two holes through the
floor, where formerly heating pipes had
passed When the diamond merchant saw
them he put his hands over his white face,
from which the perspiration was pouring,
and muttered:
my God! What have done!"
Meanwhile negro had been brought in
and ordered to sweep the floor. There had
been no thought that the diamond had gone
out of the room into the general Office. The
rumor of some great loss spread about, and
the people standing about the lobby came
crowding about the guarded doors of the
reading room. just at this point, Dr. f. s.
Coues, Of the United States navy, came out
of the wash-room, and, seeing the crowd
and the people inside the reading room
creeping and searching, he stepped in and
said to the negro with the broom:
What's the matter? Something lostT
Yes, sah," was the reply.
What is itp' asked the doctor.
Deed don't know, sab There is the
man that lost it, pointing Il tie merchant
What have you lostW asked Dr. Coues
"A diamond, was the answer.
swell, guess found - said the doctor,
and he pulled the $4,000 gem from his vest
pocket and placed it in the had of the dia-